Just curious what people think.    I've got 32 health Hardball Dynasty – Fantasy Baseball Sim Games - Player Profile: Damaso Gandarillas.    My plan was initially to call him up next season.    He's good enough now to be on my BL team but he's not exactly a "need" player.   I'd be fine without him.  

However, I started thinking about it a couple of days ago and called him up earlier today after ST ended last night.  With his low health, he's likely to have an injury plagued career.   Perhaps he'll get one of those "broken neck" injuries in game 156 where the medical bug doesn't save the player's career.   So my thinking is "Why burn a season in the minors when he could help at the BL level now?   If he's going to die on the field, I'd rather it be in a BL game."    If he goes down for the count this year, I got something from him by calling him up.   If he doesn't, all the better. 

Id prefer him in the ml.  Sometimes in the minors I dont catch a player injury fast enough to get them on the 60 day dl for the glitch.  In most cases a 60 day dl stint will help.  the only time it bites is as you pointed out towards the end of the season.  Im also a fan of using you best players regardless of service time I like to win now.

i dont' want your team any better in that league, in case we happen to meet in the playoffs. having said that, in that same world i have a couple similarly health challenged players. luckily i've never lost them to injury for a long time. i'm sure the 20/20 medical/training helps and i think that's how you roll also, so i don't see any reason not to bring him up.

The post in the other thread and this one made me wonder... can an owner who actively manages his team cultivate an advantage by using players like this?  I ask because I've seen evidence that some owners will simply never pick up this type of player because they'd rather have a roster they can set and forget.

Oh and by the way, what is "the glitch?"  

I tend to treat low health guys no different than any other player when they are a prospect.  When young, the major injury isn't as bad, since they'll be able to recover during their high growth/improvement years.

However, once they're ML-ready, I avoid putting them in harm's way.  I rest them first, and generally baby them.

ML-ready, but not in the majors would be the worst time for this guy to have a 288-day injury.

Posted by damag on 9/14/2012 3:54:00 PM (view original):
The post in the other thread and this one made me wonder... can an owner who actively manages his team cultivate an advantage by using players like this?  I ask because I've seen evidence that some owners will simply never pick up this type of player because they'd rather have a roster they can set and forget.

Oh and by the way, what is "the glitch?"  

This is true.  Low health guys will slide, and you can get top 10 talent in the 20s if you're willing to take a health risk.

The 60-day DL refreshes every 60 days, so you can get multiple recovery cycles unless the injury heals in the off season/rollover.

Gandarillas was picked at 31.   I was thrilled to get him.   So, yes, I think an advantage can be gained by gambling on these types.  Would I have taken him in the top 10?  No, you can't "miss" with a top 10 pick.

The upside to these types of guys is that others will pass on them, i.e. they are a market inefficiency that one can take advantage of if willing to assume the risk.

The downside is that you need to have a contingency plan at hand in the event of a devastating ratings-buster injury,

It depends what you call a gamble.

I took Hardball Dynasty – Fantasy Baseball Sim Games - Player Profile: Babe Valdes #1 overall with 42 (now 43) health.

He was head and shoulders above anyone else in the draft, and imminently signable.  I didn't enjoy his minor league career one bit, but once he got to the majors, it was fine.

I might have even rushed him to avoid any more meaningless games.

But an injury can happen to any player... 28 year old pitcher in my league blew out his elbow today.  97 health.  Nothing guaranteed, right?

Nothing's guaranteed, correct.  But high medical and training reduces (not eliminates) the risk of major injury.

None of it worries me at his position.  COF and 1B get way, way fewer catastrophic injuries than pitchers and up the middle players.  Keep him down this season as if his health were 80.  When he comes to the majors, have a good backup plan, because he'll hit the 15-day most seasons-- but the odds favor his maintaining his ratings reasonably.